Welch, Strickland, Adams Reintroduce Bicameral Bill to Make It Easier for Beginning Farmers and Ranchers to Start and Maintain Farming Operations

Sep 16, 2025

U.S. Senator Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Ranking Member of the Senate Agriculture Subcommittee on Rural Development, Energy, and Credit, joined U.S. Representatives Marilyn Strickland (D-WA-10) and Alma Adams (D-NC-12) in reintroducing the bicameral Capital for Beginning Farmers and Ranchers Act, legislation to help new farmers and ranchers address early financial challenges. The legislation directs the Farm Service Agency (FSA) to develop a multi-year loan pilot program to address financing challenges for beginning farmers and ranchers who often face immediate financial hurdles during their first years of operation.

“Supporting aspiring and beginner farmers is key to ensuring the long-term sustainability of our food systems and the health and welfare of our communities. Start-up funds are vital to building a business in any industry, and farming is no exception. Yet for many beginning farmers—especially first-generation and farmers of color—financial barriers can make it difficult to break ground on their farm,” said Senator Welch. “Our bicameral bill will make it easier for beginning farmers in Vermont, North Carolina, Washington, and across the country to start and maintain farming operations.”

Source : senate.gov

Video: Root Exudates, Soil Biology, and How Plants Recruit Microbes | Field Talk Friday

Field Talk Friday | Dr. John Murphy | Root Exudates, Soil Biology, and How Plants Recruit Microbes

Most of us spend our time managing what we can see above ground—plant height, leaf color, stand counts, and yield potential. But the deeper you dig into agronomy, the more you realize that some of the most important processes driving crop performance are happening just millimeters below the surface.

In this episode of Field Talk Friday, Dr. John Murphy continues the soil biology series by diving into one of the most fascinating topics in modern agronomy: root exudates and the role they play in shaping the microbial world around plant roots.

Roots are not passive structures simply pulling nutrients out of the soil. They are active participants in the underground ecosystem. Plants constantly release compounds into the soil—sugars, amino acids, organic acids, and other molecules—that act as both energy sources and signals for soil microbes.